to wish school photos would go back to how they used to be

[freddiefrog]

Picked up my childrens school photos this morning.

I usually buy photos of each of them and one of them together, frame them and give then to grannies and grandads for Christmas.

I've got Venture-style photos of my daughters standing on one leg, pretending to be an aeroplane, laying on the floor, sticking their tongue out and pretending to play fight.

All for a bargain £120

What happened to the traditional head and shoulders shots where you could get 3 for a tenner?

That is madness! My ds's school does traditional individual and sibling shots for normal prices and long modernish class ones. I like both and I do think the class ones looks more like 5/6 yr olds really are. Although the school is quite suited to it - laid back, no uniform etc. The class ones are normally priced too (£15 or something).

I quite like the informal class shots, but mine only get that in their first year and last. (too mean to buy more)
We have very nice head and shoulder shots, all good photos of kids nothing to do with me threatening ds that if he didn't smile and sit still I would send him in next day in fancy dress

but old school did head and shoulder individual shots and then for the siblings, they sat them on the ground grouped nicely together. It was a lovely picture, much nicer than the head and shoulder sibling group this time. BUT I was there for old school one (one was still pre-school) and I had to ask them NOT to do a group shot of them lying on the floor chin on hands as my kids look rubbish like that.

I am still gobsmacked at the cost of them though, and the hopeless combinations that are offered, none of which suit me.

yanbu i would be annoyed in your position. ours do the normal traditional ones & you can get a simple pack for 11 quid.
120 quid is outrageous who the hell can afford that for school photos?!

DD's school still does normal photos, but DS's does the poncey ones. I have the dilemma that I don't want to can't buy DS's, but I can't justify just buying DD's photo.
I buy neither, just take my own pictures of the DCs and print them off in Tesco on their photo printing machine. They look more like themselves that way anyway, and I can always retake it if they're pulling odd faces (which is more than can be said for school photographers if the proofs are anything to go by).

Yanbu. The worst year was ds hugging a wooden telegraph pole and dd peeping roils the corner of a metal gate with her hair like a birds nest. The class photo that year had half the year 4 girls bare footed hands on hips in teenage little madam style poses. Dd at the time was a very young for her age innocent little girl & it just wasn't her.

When we did the traditional ones, we could get a pack for £12.50

We'd get 1 really large one, 2 medium ones and 4 6x4 size ones.

We kept the large ones, the medium ones went to both sets of grandparents, then great grandma/uncle & aunts, etc got the 6x4 ones

We bought one each of the girls individually and 1 of them together. Bought cheapish 3 hole frames - 6 gifts for less than fifty quid.

This year, if I buy any it'll just be the one shot of them together.

I've actually got lots of nice pics we've taken, so I might just to calendars from Vistaprint or something instead

freddie - we did a visat print calendar last year for GP, it was really really lovely, better than school photos

DDs schools (primary and secondary) do traditional pics.

Do you know whether other parents like what's being offered now? If not, suggest you get together and tell the school that it was an interesting experiment but please could they go back to normal pictures for an affordable price.

If anyone really wants to spend loads on poncy photos they can take their kids to a photographer themselves, its not what they should be doing in school time.

This is the first year we've used this company

They did the class photos at the beginning of the year which didn't sell too well (I never buy the class photos anyway), but I'm not sure how popular the individual ones have been - the proofs were back Friday but I forgot to pick then up, so haven't heard much about it yet

They are very expensive and a massive price increase on the previous ones, so I don't think they'll be all that popular.

I'll have a look at the Vistaprint calendars I think, either that or I've got some Photobox credits for photobooks

Agreed. Really don't like the new fangled ones, especially the class ones that are yards long. DS had them last year for the first time - when I complained to school they said that they didn't have a choice I suspect it is because they get more cashback from the long ones. I happened to be in another school recently and they had done the class in little groups but instead of sticking them into a long line, at least they were all on the normal size of whole class print, just dotted around with the teacher near the centre. Seemed a good compromise for those that want a new fangled picture and those that want a traditional size print!

I happened to be at DS2's nursery when they were taking pictures as it was half term, so I'd dragged taken ds1 along too for getting some together. First off she tried to use a manky old ikea soft toy football as a prop on the baby in front of us - not caring that there was a massive label still sticking out of it and in front of the child's front. I not very diplomatically stepped in and said that as a mum I would be really unhappy if I got photos back that were dominated by a dirty IKEA label. Bad enough having the football there in the first place, it being grubby and having a label showing made it a whole lot worse. She did have the grace to agree and cut the label out there and then, but I can't believe if she is doing this stuff every day that she didn't think about it when it was brand new. And when I saw some of the photos when they came back, lo and behold, there were labels in a good number of them.

Then when it was my DC's turn she wanted them to hold balloons - which meant that because they were so high and big, to be in proportion the dc were only half the size they could have been. I said she could take them if she wanted but I knew that I didn't want photos with props in so I could tell her there and then that I wouldn't be buying any. In the end, I did get a reasonable set of photos with no props. But compared with the other parents who weren't around to dictate make their preferences known, I ended up with a much better set, several parents were unhappy because of the number of shots where props had prominence.

I was seriously considering volunteering to take a traditional class photo for dc1's class when he left in Y2 - and then maybe charged a token £3 to be donated towards the school to get a full sized copy emailed to them. Or if they wanted a copy - set up a print run at photobox or tesco or wherever and let them pay the cost plus a £3 donation to school. Bet that would still net the school more per photo than they get from the proper people.

Freddie frog....

To your friend and husband who are scanning the pic and photshoping out the watermark.
Congratulations to them. They have found a way of depriving the hardworking photographer of his/her income and the school of the commision.

How would they feel if someome cheated them out of their income/benefits.

Take what they do to the nth degree. There would not be a school photography industry as all togs would go out of business. What they have done pushes up the price for everyone else.

Apart from being deceitful it's against the law.

I am a nursery and school photographer, would agree that £120 does sound excessive. If a parent spends £120 with us they would get great value for this.

A lot of parents seem to think that school photos are a "rip off", they see prices at Asda, .maybe 80p for a 10x8 print and wonder why they are being charged a whopping great £10 or £12 for their 10x8 print. What they dont appreciate is how much time and effort that has went in to produce that image (from the booking of the school through to the editing of the images)

With regards to cost, take a 10x8 print for £10, between the school and the tax man they can take app 50% of that whopping £10, leaving the photographer with £5 to take the photo, print the proofs, collect the orders, edit the orders, print, package and deliver the order. School photographer dont wear black masks and carry S.W.A.G bags, they are genuine people who are undertaking a job as they too have families and mortgages to be paid for.

As a photographer i can work 7 days a week 12 hours per day to produce the best images at competitive prices. To think that people are scanning images is pretty soul destroying.

Imagine you are at work, your boss comes in and says "you can go home now as your replacement is working for free, thanks for your time any way, oh and your not getting paid for the work you have done". Would you smile and thank them????

Well said Dee

I did my last shoot till after christmas yesterday, after shooting almost everyday since the first day of term. Just about dead on my feet. Sales seem to be holding up this year, thank goodness. Are you freelance or a company tog. I know of a good school photography forum if you're interested. www.schoolphotpro.com

One of my friends is a commercial photographer, the firm he works for also does school photography. He works all hours, all over the country, 7 days a week if necessary, they really aren't raking it in at all.

I wish they would get rid of the white background

DDs are both very pale and they pretty much look like poorly ghosts

and whts's with the jaunty angle?

£9.50 is the cheapest pack option for 1 6x4

I haven't bought school photos since DD1 was in reception, now yr 6 and I'm really sad I won't be able to embarrass them on their 18th they won't have them to look back on in years to come

Can't bare the lying down shots, or the arse to camera shot looking back.

Just want a classic head and shoulders mug shot.

I watched them try to get my DS in really stupid poses -" put your hands in your pockets' she said, "there you look like a boy in a next catalogue."

Arghh.

This year I decided to get all 3 of them in one shot to make it cheaper. This was the first year they decided to stop doing sibling shots unless you wanted to have your kids in the hallway for 7.30am. I just let them do their own sweet thing and kept the proofs which my shit-hot-at-anything-technical dh made them into big pictures without the word 'Proof' all over the shop. Also my fil is a pro photographer and has offered to do a sibling shot for me.

OP - YANBU. £120 is ridiculous.

We're getting a family shot, of both ds and dd, with 1No 10x8, 2 No 7x5 and four smaller ones for £26. We can't afford to get the individual ones as well, but don't really need them as the family will be happier with the one of them together.

Dee82 Sat 24-Nov-12 15:58:13

(from the booking of the school through to the editing of the images

To "lookatallthe***I.....

Your school photographer worked hard to provide you with a good picture. What did you and your ever so clever dh do???

Cheat him out of his income.

You must be so pleased with yourselves.

School togs are not faceless conglomerates. Often they are one man bands just trying to make a living.

To muddlingmakem...

It's not necessary to edit school photos. We just get it right in the camera and that's what the parents get. We can photoshop temporary spots if requested.

I've started a thread in the products section about what parents want from school togs if anyone wants to contribute

Old school photos here, complete with lost teeth and sticking up hair. None of that frolicking in the playground malarkey, or rolling around on furry mats. Thank goodness.

I NEVER buy any. We have our own decent camera and take pics of the kids ourselves. Why would I pay sizeable sums of money to buy photos when I can take great ones myself for minimum cost

Nah. I don't feel guilty. I'm trying but no. I'll let dh take the blame... Don't worry I shelled out £60 on photos last year. If I want to enlarge a copy of my childs photo then goddammit I will. Don't grass me up now. I know you're so going to do this yourself :o

I've yet to buy a school photo. DD's last one her hair is absolutely mental, all over the place, bobbles fallen out, in her face and food on her face. She wasn't smiling either, and she is happy to pose for photos. Another one wasn't very well focused. How hard would it have been to get her looking a bit neater? Not venture style ones here yet (though I have seen some of them). But they are very overpriced for very poor photos.

I take a lot of pictures anyway and wouldn't every buy them off someone, and think the traditional baby poo coloured fake vomit curtain, or fake bookcase backdrop photos are beyond naff, but if you like that kinda thing then the photo printer shops do 'school photo's' much cheaper apparently.

Lookatallthe***

If every parent did what you did there would be no school photography industry. Do you have any other good scams you could pass on?

DaveMccave. That photo should never have been taken like that. Togs can't go near the kids for fear of being accused of all sorts of nasty things. Tog shold have got a member of staff to sort her out.

Out of focus.... Almost impossible to achieve with modern auto focus cameras.

I suggest you request your school to get a good tog (I'm free)

Book case b/g is popular for secondary and leavers pics

DD's is nice this year, white background, no more jaunty angle. Saw a friend's proofs the other day, I don't necessarily mind lying down shots but there was an awful lot of navy blue uniform in the photo, and not a lot of her DD, really not a good pic.

Whole school photo meanwhile (same company) is pretty awful, school sec is having words with the company!